A deadly blow to ICL : 79 players rejoin BCCI

Mumbai: The BCCI on Tuesday granted amnesty to 79 players and 11 former cricketers, as they decided to cut off their ties with the rebel board, the Indian Cricket League.

The decision was immensely motivated by the time-bound amnesty that the BCCI had offered to all these players.

“By snapping ties with ICL, the cricketers immediately became eligible for domestic cricket and would also be considered for international matches once they complete their one year cooling off period," the BCCI said.

"The BCCI, after scrutinising their requests has written to the concerned state associations that these players are eligible to play in the domestic tournaments for this year", Board secretary N Srinivasan said.

Reetinder Sodhi, Rohan Gavaskar, Hemang Badani, Deep Dasgupta were some former International players who decided to cut-off their ties.

Erapalli Prasanna, Ajit Wadekar, Sandeep Patil, Balwinder Singh Sandhu and Madan Lal, who were assigned as coach to different teams have also decided to join hands with the mainstream league.

"We still have 40-50 players, out of the original 140-odd, on our roster and as and when the need arises we would recruit fresh talent. The League is on. We are not closing down. The next season is in October-November and it's still early days", an ICL official said.